I’m back in Italy! Just the time to eat some homemade pasta and I got a cold, which mixed with the jet lag of the trip from China, means that I’m truly having some great days 😐 But nothing can stop me from writing the roundup of the best AR/VR news of the week for you, my lovely readers! So get ready to read some interesting XR news…
Top news of the week
Meta to launch Quest 3 in 2023, despite the layoffs
During the latest earning calls, Mark Zuckerberg confirmed that Meta is going to launch a new device, the Quest 3, in 2023. He didn’t say “Quest 3”, but talked about “our next generation consumer headset”… but we know that it will be the Quest 3.
This is an important confirmation to have, because currently Meta is undergoing a heavy restructuring and has just performed big layoffs, with rumors talking about new layoffs coming in March. The confirmed launch of the new headset means that the company is still full steam ahead in pursuing its metaverse dream.
More info (Quest 3 coming in 2023)
More info (New layoffs planned at Meta)
Other relevant news
New information on PSVR 2 is unveiled
Sony Interactive Entertainment is keeping growing the hype for the upcoming launch of the PSVR 2. This week we had for instance the first official unboxing of PSVR 2, so that future customers know exactly what to expect from it. But even more, we had some game developers, like the ones of Pavlov and Pistol Whip, that have detailed how the game runs better on this console than on PCVR. And we had some interesting details, like the fact that the new headset is 7% lighter than the previous model, and that it can work also without the TV connected after it has been configured.
And regarding the lack of content, in a related FAQ, Sony has answered that more than 100+ titles are in development for this console. New players have so just to wait a bit to have new games…
More info (PSVR 2 unboxing)
More info (Pistol Whip on PSVR 2)
More info (Pavlov on PSVR 2)
More info (PSVR 2 works without a TV)
More info (100+ titles are in development for PSVR 2)
Battery certification confirms the Samsung MR headset
We already know that Samsung is working on a headset together with Google and Qualcomm. But now some data about it is starting to be found. The model should be codenamed “SM-I120” and its battery has just been certificated in South Korea. This battery is very small, and measures 45mm x 45mm, but this doesn’t help us in understanding the whole dimension of the device.
It’s not much, but if this data is starting to surface, probably very soon we’ll discover more info about it via patents or hardware certification websites.
News worth a mention
Meta finalizes the acquisition of Within
After having won the trial against the FTC, Meta has finalized the acquisition of Within. Supernatural is so now a game of Meta’s, giving the company an official product in the profitable fitness VR market.
Ubisoft to work on the sequel of Assassin’s Creed VR
The most confusing news of the week comes from Insider Gaming, which reports that Ubisoft is already working on the sequel of Assassin’s Creed Nexus, which is the virtual reality game of the Assassin’s Creed saga. The nonsense comes from the fact that the first game has not been launched yet, so it sounds a bit strange that the company is already working on its sequel…
Meta Quest to add direct touch panels
It seems that the v50 of the Quest runtime is finally adding direct touch panels. This means that you will be able to interact with the menus directly with your fingers. In the videos, it seems very cool, but I would like to evaluate it by testing it in VR.
Meta finds the source of its VR leaks
Meta has found the person that was selling information about the upcoming headsets to the YouTuber Brad Lynch. He was an external contractor with which the company has cut all ties, now. I guess the company made sure this information was shared so that to warn other future leakers that they will be found and fired. There was a bit of controversy in this story because Brad has paid the source to reveal these industrial secrets, and it seems that this is not ethical according to journalism standards.
Sony Mocopi may not be ideal for full-body VR
Some weeks ago, Sony revealed Mocopi, a cheap and small system for full body tracking. Many people in the community were hyped for its potential use for full-body VR, but a Redditor has tried it and reported that it is not immune to drift and lag. It seems that Vive Trackers are still the best solution for full-body VR, at this moment.
MyndVR will be covered by a New York insurer
AgeWell New York’s CareWell members will have access to MyndVR products, which provide senior-focused VR digital therapy. This is another proof of the recognition of virtual reality applictions as working therapies in the healthcare sector.
MIT Engineers invent vertical, full-color microscopic LEDs
MIT has recently announced that its engineers have developed a new way to make sharper, defect-free displays, with the invention of vertical, full-color microscopic LEDs. The innovation is the one of stacking the R-G-B components of the pixel not horizontally (with the subpixel one close to the other) but vertically (with the subpixels one on top of the other). Thanks to this innovation, it is possible to increase a lot the density of the pixels of a display, because every pixel occupies one-third of the original horizontal space. This is ideal for XR devices, where the added pixel density can contribute to increased realism.
Some news on content
- The Light Brigade is an interesting roguelike game that reminds me of In Death: Unchained. It is releasing on February 22nd for $25;
- Upload has reviewed Barbaria, and praised its great mix of action and tower defense gaming mechanics
- There is already a VR mod available for the game of the moment, that is Hogwarts: Legacy
- Mixture releases on February, 23rd for Quest 2
- Tilt Five is publishing on Steam an AR version of the board game Takenoko later this month
More info (The Light Brigade)
More info (Barbaria)
More info (Hogwarts: Legacy)
More info (Mixture)
More info (Takenoko)
Other news
Meta to open Horizon Worlds to teens to try to increase its numbers
The Sandbox VR to host a game inspired by the popular Netflix series Squid Game
A new study shows that AR educational experiences may engage students more, but not always offer better retention than traditional methods
Sebastian Ang talks about a mindblowing upcoming VR headset
Google releases Immersive Stream for XR, which is cloud rendering from the Google Cloud
This mix of VR and AI by Andy Bacon is the best thing I’ve seen this week
Vermillion now supports overlay mode in Steam VR, letting you paint while you are in another VR game
Google’s head of AR/VR Clay Bavor has just left the company
News from partners (and friends)
Versy integrates generative AI
My friends at Versy have just added a feature so that you can write a text prompt about the kind of room that you want in the Versy platform, and the system automatically generates that professional space for you.
Learn more
Inseye proposes camera-less eye tracking
Inseye has just announced its eye-tracking solution which doesn’t use cameras but photosensors and AI software. According to the company, this solution is several times cheaper and more efficient than the traditional ones. A Kickstarter about this system is coming soon.
Learn more
Some XR fun
The perfect VR video thumbnail doesn’t exis…
Funny link
This will happens inside many homes on February, 22nd
Funny link
Same same but different
Funny link
Linkedin these days
Funny link
Donate for good
Like last week, also this week in this final paragraph I won’t ask you to donate for my blog, but to the poor people that are facing the consequences of the war. Please donate to the Red Cross to handle the current humanitarian situation in Ukraine. I will leave you the link to do that below.
Let me take a moment before to thank anyway all my Patreon donors for the support they give to me:
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